Preparing for Entrance Exams

One of the most difficult things about preparing for entrance exams is the fact that there is no one single model of a school admissions test paper. One school may ask candidates to respond to a creative writing task about a childhood memory, while another might require them to analyse an eighteenth-century poem. Over the years, we have helped many students prepare for Common Entrance exams or 16+ admissions, and one of the recurrent problems we have seen across the board was students’ failure to read the questions and plan their answers. These two key points are important for any kind of entrance exam paper and can help students improve their results, even when they are less sure about the questions.

Whatever the task on the test paper, it’s important to read through the question several times with care. It is often the case that there are clues in the instructions about how to answer the question successfully. Sometimes a directed writing task might list several points for candidates  to include in their writing, which will damage their score if neglected. Sometimes certain phrasing in the title question, such as ‘to what extent’, may indicate the way that candidates should answer. Candidates should also look at the time allocated for the question and the number of marks available. This will help them to gauge how much to write for that particular question and decide if that section should be a priority.

Once candidates have ascertained how they should answer the question, they should spend a good portion of the exam time planning their answer. For example, in a two-hour unseen paper, 30 minutes should be used to read through the question, annotate the text, and organise their thoughts into bullet points which can then be grouped into PEE paragraphs. If they rush the planning stage, they will end up thinking on paper and fail to express themselves clearly. Planning ensures candidates can respond with clarity, structure and confidence — and this will impress examiners and allow them to award a higher mark. 

Students should practise their planning approach by trailing different methods. Head over to the Seven Springs Education Instagram where we will shortly be sharing some further essay tips and practice questions.

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